1. The defendant pleaded guilty to the lesser charge of petty theft.

Question

loaded words*****
jargon

2. This medicine can produce harmful side effects.

jargon
loaded words*****

3. So, what's up?

slang
colloquialism*****

4. She is a young actress of great potential.

cliche
sexist language*****

5. Wall Street is in for a rude awakening.

euphemism*****
cliche

6. Terry is the spokesman for the new product.

sexist language*****
jargon

7. The film trailer still needs some splicing.

loaded language
jargon*****

I'm not 100% sure on these ones, can someone please help?

Answer 1

I wish I knew which words your are supposed to identify. For example, referring to a female actor as an actress is considered sexist by some (many). To say she "has great potential" is also a cliché in that it's frequently used and is really meaningless. And to call someone a spokesman may be sexist to distinguish a male from a female, but it's also jargon to describe a specific role.

Answer 2

I know what you mean, that's why I'm having so much trouble with this:/ It also sucks because I'd hate to get even one wrong because each question is worth 5 points:( (This is AP, but even so... some of the questions go beyond hard and right into absurdity, in my opinion)
Do you think the other ones are correct?

Answer 3

According to the lesson and the diction page it provides me to study from defines "sexist language" as words or expressions that promote gender stereotypes (some words such as he and she are sometimes not needed; not all gender determining language can be eliminated).

Now that I go over these, I THINK 3,4,5,6,7 are correct.

Here's the definitions for jargon and loaded language they give me:

jargon: the specialized vocabulary used in any professional area such as medical, legal, or technical field.

loaded language: words or expressions that are "weighed down" with importance that appeals to the emotion.

This makes me think that 1 & 2 might be jargon but I still don't know??

Answer 4

I think #1 is jargon. It's a legal term. Some might consider it loaded if they think every offense must be punished to the maximum every time, but it is a legal term. #2, "harmful" is a "loaded term". It may be quite correct, but does appeal to the emotions. I think you are probably correct on the others, yes. "Actress" is now considered sexist, and I've learned not to use the word. :) And "spokesman" is probably sexist, too. "Spokesperson" may be preferable.

Answer 5

Okay, thank you, you've been a huge help. One more thing real quick (if you don't mind), do you think "So, what's up?" is a slang term or a colloquialism? I feel like it could be both.

Answer 6

I think it's colloquialism.